Dale Delapenha, manager and funeral director of Delapenha's Funeral Home in Kingston and Montego Bay, St James, is seeking to revolutionise the offerings of funeral services, with his latest addition to his hearse fleet, the Dela G. The all-black Mercedes-Benz G Class Gullwing hearse with silver trimming details arrived in the island earlier this year and has already garnered the attention of persons as they seek to celebrate the life of their loved ones in style. Deemed as more than just a vehicle, the Dela G has gullwing doors and a spacious limousine addition.
"Pretty much all hearses are rear-loading hearses, meaning, the caskets come into the vehicle from the back. The unique feature of this hearse is that it is a side-loading [one], so it allows a few things, like a passenger compartment, so that family members can ride alongside their loved ones. It also has a 10,000-watt stereo system, so the pastor can use it as an amplifier at the graveside.
It is just very unique in its presentation," Delapenha disclosed. "It appeals to anyone who wants to know that they have done their best for their loved ones, which is a wide cross-section of people. We have always tried to be innovators in the industry and we believe that this glass hearse is continuing in that phase.
We are seeing how persons are gravitating towards the innovation and the funeral culture in Jamaica has evolved into a more celebratory and festive kind of affair," he told the news team. However, when quizzed about the price point for this glamorous hearse, the funeral director began whistling. "We really don't want to go into costs.
It comes with certain packages and if you are taking a lower priced package, then you might have to pay an additional price for it so it is really a case-by-case thing," he explained. "It's booked quite regularly and every funeral that it goes to, it has a great impact because people are curious. To date, there is none other like it.
It draws a lot of attention and it is available at both locations," Delapenha related. The acquisition of the vehicle has been in the making since the late 1990s, according to Delapenha, who shared that the late Princess Diana's funeral served as inspiration. He reflected that it has always been 'a dream' to have a fleet of Mercedes-Benz vehicles aligned to his funeral home brand, as the German brand signifies elegance and class.
That dream became actualised in 1998 when the funeral home acquired its first Mercedes-Benz and has grown to an addition of four. But he noted that the affinity of luxurious and flashy hearses was not always the method of the funeral home, which was previously headed by his father Horace in Hague, Trelawny, before 1983. By 1992, a building in Montego Bay was purchased.
Delapenha shared that at that time, the funeral culture in Jamaica was much more reserved and traditional. "My father being old and independent, wanted to hold on to those traditions but I recognised that the times and culture were changing and that people weren't into the same things that the generation before was into. You notice the fashion, the spirit, everything at funerals, the whole funeral culture has evolved and we wanted not just to be following the evolution, but actually being innovative in the evolution," Delapenha said, adding that his company was the first to offer SUV-type hearses in the island.
"The funeral industry has always been a natural evolution for me. I never really saw myself doing anything else and it gives me great pleasure serving families and I find the work very rewarding," he told THE STAR ..
